Nelson Branco's Soap Opera Uncensored: Issue 36 Read online

me. “And I’m coming with him,” reminded Hall. “He doesn’t travel anywhere without me!”

  GENERAL HOSPITAL, ABC/CITY — A Stormy Future? Why Anderson Was Kicked Off The Emmy Red Carpet!

  • A month ago, I was made aware that Kirsten Storms had met with executive producer Frank Valentini to discuss bringing back the popular actress as Maxie, which is currently being played by beloved replacement Jen Lilley. But, alas, my lips were sealed. Almost immediately, after DIGEST leaked the news Friday, Valentini ominously tweeted he had no idea where “these rumours” stemmed from. Lilley retweeted his statement. Er, spin.

  When UNCENSORED caught up with Lilley at the Emmys, the cute whippersnapper simply told me, “I’m not allowed to comment right now.”

  Storms’ mother, Karen, confirmed the news to her hometown paper, THE ORLANDO SENTINEL. "She is returning to GH the end of this month actually in her role of Maxie," Karen Storms said in an email on Friday afternoon. "She's happy and excited to be back."

  Look for an interview with Lilley’s in next week’s UNCENSORED. And in the future, a must-read interview with my pal Kirsten Storms.

  FYI: A spokesperson for ABC says that they have no comment at this time regarding Storms' return. The actress took a medical leave of absence in September, even dropping out of production on the E! reality show DIRTY SOAP. While ABC has never officially announced what Storms' illness was, it was said on DIRTY SOAP that she suffered from endometriosis.)

  • Finola Hughes, my new soap wife, got her face “did” in my Beverly Hilton hotel room. And let me tell you she’s more beautiful sans makeup. We had a blast catching up in person before she revealed to me, “I’m working with a new co-star who is going to blow your mind but I can’t tell you or I’ll have to kill you.” I love it when Fin talks dirty to me. And teehee: she said blow.

  • Emmy Malfunction: Bradford Anderson was not in a good mood at the Daytime Emmy Awards. No, he wasn’t pissed because he lost Supporting Actor to his co-star Jonathan Jackson. Turns out as Anderson began giving interviews on the red carpet to promote his nomination and GH, an HLN wrangler told him to leave the carpet immediately so bigger stars could walk down the carpet first! “I’m so angry I couldn’t talk to you guys,” lamented Anderson to me later. As we were chatting and catching up, Anderson cornered the HLN wrangler and she quickly apologized!

  • Honouring a previous commitment to visit her family in the Chicago area and to help her nephew fund-raise for the 9/11 charity Remembrance Rescue Project, an MIA Nancy Lee Grahn predictably won her second Outstanding Supporting Actress trophy on June 23. But appearing on a local Chicago-area talk show, WINDY CITY LIVE, she delivered her speech belatedly:

  "I had nothing prepared, which is the surest way to win an Emmy, is to not know what you're going to say! But what I would first say is thank you to everyone I've worked with in daytime for 27 years, for tolerating me, putting up with me. I thank the actors that voted for me, who I suspect may have been slightly intoxicated. I don't know, I can't explain it! I fell asleep during my tape. I don't know what happened. Then I would go on and on about my family, who means more to me than anything, and my brother-in-law Louis, who won't let me back in his lake house if I don't say that, and my friends, because people who have great friends look at mine and envy me, and my daughter has, like, 10 godmothers that just embrace us regularly. And then the music would play and they would try to get me off the stage and I wouldn't go until I handed this to my daughter, Katherine Grace, which she will get. This Emmy, this is the first time that I'm telling her this, that this is yours. This goes in your room and when you go to college — and I go with you! — you'll take this with you wherever you go because I want you to remember that life is good and that if you do what you love in life and you do the best that you can and you have faith that all is well, it will be."

  It’s a shame Grahn, and others, didn’t show because we lost out on one heck of an alcohol-induced acceptance speech!

  • Next week: Awesome interviews with Becky Herbst and Jonathan Jackson! Party at my house.

  THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS — Breaden Out Again! Alden Wants to Return to Y&R!

  • Here we go again: According to setside sources, Y&R is writing out Victor Newman during Eric Braeden’s tumultuous contract negotiations around August. “It’s not going well,” says a mole. “The sticking point isn’t necessarily money but his guarantee.”

  In order to keep Braeden in line this time around (he bolted two years ago in a story I broke for TVGuide.ca and went on a media blitz prompting Braeden to embark on a media blitz tour after he refused to take a pay cut), the show decided write off TGVN in a surprising, inventive way that may redeem the controversial Shictor debacle. But don’t quote me on that until I see how it translates onscreen.

  This probably explains why Braeden decided to attend the Daytime Emmy Awards, which he hasn’t done in forever, to increase his profile during this uncertain time.

  Stay tuned to UNCENSORED for more on this developing story. And yes, I’m experiencing déjà vu again.

 

  • Oh, I miss my Jill Abbott: How is my transient former soap wife, Jess Walton, doing during her self-imposed, six-month Y&R hiatus in Oregon? “I’m very happy here,” she tells me. Has she decided to come back to Y&R? “We’ll see what happens in the fall, won't we?" Tease!

  • Does Sharon have a brain tumour? Nope.

  • Which Y&R actor is gaining a bit too much weight? Since he’s a man, I doubt anyone will tell him to shed any weight.

  • Guess who’s a Nelson Branco fan? B&B writer Kay Alden! “I’ve been dying to meet you forever,” she cooed. “I’ve been a fan of your columns for years.” When I asked her if she’d ever head-write Y&R again, she answered, “Yes, I would actually. Let’s make that happen. I could write it with my friend Sally Sussman Morina.” Makes sense since Alden and Morina were William Bell’s only protégés other than his son, Brad. Considering B&B is heavy on writing talent, it could afford to lose Alden, who tells me she mainly focuses on breakdowns but also writes scripts and helps plot long-term storyline on the most watched daily serial on the planet. And it’s nice to hear Alden and Morina are pals because in this business that’s rare!

  • Congratulations to Joshua Morrow, who is expecting his fourth child with wife Tobe and his first daughter. Get this — Morrow’s bambino is due on the same day his co-star and best friend Michael Muhney is expecting: Nov. 10! How rad! Hopefully, Muhney won’t switch the babies this time around.

  • More next week: Holy f*ck, how amazing and super-romantic was Adam’s proposal PRETTY IN PINK-inspired proposal to Chelsea this past week? There wasn’t a dry seat in my house…. Nor near Chadam’s! This. Is. How. It’s. Done. Folks. Muhney continues to prove he can do no wrong… now if only Adam tweeted, too, we’d have a ball game.

  SOAP OPERA MYSTERY HOUR

  This week’s hottest blind item

  • Which two co-stars are more frenemies than friends? Their competition is causing some concern backstage.

  • Which newcomer drinks way too much… and loves to make out and flirt with his onscreen mother?

  • Which vixen is headed back to her old stomping grounds… probably with a baby in tow?!

  THE IDIOT RATINGS: June 11-15

  Winner: Y&R, B&B Surge!

  *Courtesy of Soap Opera Network

  (Compared to Last Week/Compared to Last Year)

  NOTE: Please do not copy and paste the entire ratings. Thank you.

  Numbers are based on Live+Same Day ratings

  (Compared to Last Week/Compared to Last Year)

  NOTE: U.S. Open Golf pre-empted DAYS in some markets on Thursday and Friday

  Total Viewers

  1. Y&R 4,391,000 (+83,000/-329,000)

  2. B&B 3,128,000 (+67,000/+404,000)

  3. DAYS 2,488,000 (-47,000/+136,000)

  4. GH 2,294,000 (-46,000/-57,000)

  Households

  1. Y&R 3.3/10 (+.1/-.1)


  2. B&B 2.3/7 (+.1/+.3)

  3. DAYS 1.9/6 (same/+.1)

  4. GH 1.7/5 (-.1/-.1)

  Women 18-49 Viewers

  1. Y&R 857,000 (+17,000/-120,000)

  2. B&B 687,000 (+9,000/+152,000)

  3. GH 556,000 (-26,000/-95,000)

  4. DAYS 534,000 (-13,000/-159,000)

  Women 18-49 Rating

  1. Y&R 1.3/9 (same/-.2)

  2. B&B 1.1/7 (same/+.3)

  3. GH 0.9/5 (same/-.1)

  4. DAYS 0.8/5 (-.1/-.3)

  Women 18-34 Rating

  1. Y&R 0.7 (same/-.1)

  2. DAYS 0.6 (+.1/same)

  2. B&B 0.6 (same/+.2)

  4. GH 0.4 (same/-.1)

  The next issue of SOAP OPERA UNCENSORED will be out on Tuesday, July 3, 2012.